Crave is a heavy metal band from Norway formed by guitarist Tron Sturle Aune and bassist Nils Morten Bietnes, releasing the band’s debut album ‘Oblivion’ in 2024…
…featuring drummer Kjetil Krangsas and singer Jan Arild Rostad alongside founders Tron and Nils. Now when it comes to metal exports, Norway is more well-known for black metal than traditional heavy metal – Crave is a new band determined to break that trend! The band delivered a strong British-flavoured style of heavy metal, the kind that was prevalent during metal earliest days during the late seventies and into the eighties with bands such as Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Rainbow, Whitesnake, Def Leppard, Iron Maiden and Samson influencing the band’s direction. And even though the Norwegian metallers are nine hundred miles and over forty years away from where traditional heavy metal was born, the band have got the old school sound spot on – ‘Oblivion’ consisting of twelve songs across fifty-three minutes.
Opening with the album title song ‘Oblivion’, Crave are quickly into their stride, pounding the ground hard with a punchy “foot on the monitor” gallop that’d not be out of place during the mid-eighties peak for the legendary NWOBHM evolution. And I should know, for I was there as a teenager, growing up during the metal evolution listening to all the greats and having a fucking great time. And right here, right now, a massive forty years later, comes a band with exactly the same sound as back then! What a start – ‘Baby’ slowing the pace to a doom-laden crawl, the seventies ‘Sabbath, ‘Purple and Rainbow sound rising high in the air. A totally different opening one-two makes me wonder just where Crave are gonna go next! Not too far is the short answer, ‘The Spirit Of Maze’ moving away from the doom-laden crawl of the previous song to stroll along like a late-night rock song to accompany a slow dance at the local disco.
The variation across the album’s first three songs has been immense, the band heavying things up tenfold with the thundering foot stomper ‘Fallen Angels’ – the chorus break turning into a melodic march of high sing-a-long ability. And I reckon every metal fan from (and of) the seventies and early eighties style are gonna find something here to satisfy their every taste, Crave catering for a vast array of fans, followers and listeners. The energy and tempo levels both take a dramatic upward trajectory as ‘Hole In The Wall’ roars into sight and thunders on at a head-bangingly friendly pace – every mosh pit in the world stirring to headbang along to this one. And the mighty foot stomp takes front and centre along with an immense hard-hitting swagger as ‘Chain Reaction’ intensely pounds the ground. Since ‘Oblivion’ (the album) began, the sound of seventies and eighties hard rock and heavy metal has driven the album forward with grandeur and poise, the band bringing the house down with an incredible aura.
There’s just no escaping the age-old sound of rock – a sound that sees “classic rock meeting metal” in the shape of ‘In The Shadow Of The Moon’, Crave maintaining the album’s sensational retro feel. If it was the band’s intention (and I honestly think it was), to create an album with a fifty-year-old sound then I salute you, ’cause you’ve got it spot on! ‘Watchdog’ returns the glorious gallop of traditional heavy metal to the fore, the band planting their collective feet firmly on the monitor to adopt the iconic metal pose – a pose that’s been around for so long it’s become a part of our culture! And when I say “our culture”, I mean the metalhead culture. A little of the doom metal feel from earlier resurfaces with ‘Through The Fire’ taking a slow and steady walk across the land. Only time will tell if Crave offer up a second album, but rest assured the band first will stand tall within the old-school come classic rock come seventies heavy metal arena.
And with a highly tribal sounding intro, ‘Apache Nation’ then brings the classic NWOBHM guitar tone to the listening millions (hey, you gotta think big to be big) – ‘Oblivion’ (the album) transporting everyone who’s old enough back to their younger days and first ever interaction with rock and metal music! Who knew back then it was gonna morph into the fucking big beautiful beast it is today – ‘Sons Of Anarchy’ foraging deep in the band’s locker to deliver every style that’s in there! All album long Crave have catered for a very wide audience, an audience made up equally of rockers and metallers – and me! Although I’m a metaller first and a rocker second, the Norwegian metal outfit bringing their debut album to a close with ‘Urge’, sizzling with just as much swagger as every other song on offer – Crave craving that old school sound! And boy do they have it!
Overall, with twelve songs featuring a massive seventies rock and metal sound, Crave has delivered a very good retro style album.
TRACKLIST
Oblivion
Baby
The Spirit Of Maze
Fallen Angels
Hole In The Wall
Chain Reaction
In The Shadow Of The Moon
Watchdog
Through The Fire
Apache Nation
Sons Of Anarchy
Urge
Crave: Facebook
Release Year: 2024
Label: Battlegod Productions
Category: Album
Country: Norway
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire and Metal-Roos.
